A republic of southwestern Asia, Israel is situated on the Mediterranean Sea. Area: 20,700 sq km (7,992 sq mi), not including territory occupied in the June 1967 war. Pop. (1993 est.): 5,451,000. Cap.: Jerusalem (but see Israel table in World Data section). Monetary unit: New (Israeli) sheqel, with (Oct. 4, 1993) a free rate of 2.84 sheqalim to U.S. $1 (4.30 sheqalim = £1 sterling). Presidents in 1993, Chaim Herzog and, from March 24, Ezer Weizman; prime minister, Yitzhak Rabin. Soon after his Labour-dominated coalition won power in the summer of 1992, Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin embarked on a mission to redraw the political map of the Middle East; his plan assumed an altogether new dimension in 1993 when he finalized historic accords with Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) leader Yasir Arafat on September 13 in Washington, D.C. Barely six months after assuming office, Rabin had established his political authority in a manner the country had not witnessed since the golden days...